Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg found himself in a unique situation earlier this week as he rode both shotgun and drove a race car with NASCAR’s Dale Earnhardt, Jr., approaching speeds of 175 mph.
On Zuckerberg’s latest destination as he tours every state in 2017, he made a pit stop at Hendrick Motorsports before heading to Charlotte Motor Speedway where he joined Earnhardt, Jr. on Facebook Live for a quick discussion on ‘community.’
“For them, NASCAR is a huge part of their identity, and a lot of people pin their hopes on you winning,” Earnhardt said about fans.
“I kind of compare what the fans go through to what I go through being a fan of pro teams like the Washington Redskins. If they win or lose, it makes or breaks my week. I live along with our own fan base and our successes and failures. I understand that when we don’t have a good week, they have to go to work on Monday and hear it from their buddies. We talk about that. We interact with that on social media. They’re very supportive.”
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Earnhardt, Jr. added that the NASCAR community as a whole is “really tight-knit, it’s very strong.”
“It’s like one big circus that goes from town to town to town. We all work in it together,” he said.
After a quick conversation, Earnhardt and Zuckerberg took to the track, with the former behind the wheel first.
Some of the first words out of Zuckerberg’s mouth?
“Holy shit!” he remarked as the car picked up speed in the early stages. “Alright we are a little close to the wall. I can’t actually hear anything that I’m saying.”
Towards the end of the ride, Zuckerberg was ecstatic with the rare opportunity to ride in a race car.
“What a crazy experience. This is unbelievable. This is amazing. You can really feel the grip,” he said.
“I think there would probably be millions of people who would die to do what I just did.”
Following Earnhardt’s driving, the two swapped spots as Zuckerberg took to the driver’s seat with Earnhardt Jr. giving him tips from the sidelines.
“Should I get closer to this yellow wall here?” Zuckerberg asked Earnhardt.
“Yeah, as close as you can get,” Earnhardt joked.
Below is the 25-minute Facebook Live video highlighting Zuckerberg’s experience in Charlotte.